How to Change Video Aspect Ratio (16:9, 9:16, 4:3, 1:1)

Why Aspect Ratio Matters More Than Ever

In 2026, a single video often needs to live on multiple platforms — each demanding a different aspect ratio. A YouTube video shot in 16:9 widescreen needs to become 9:16 vertical for TikTok and Instagram Reels, 1:1 square for Instagram feed posts, and possibly 4:5 portrait for Facebook feed optimization.

Getting the aspect ratio wrong means your content either gets cropped unpredictably by the platform, shows ugly black bars, or worst of all, appears distorted. This guide covers every method for changing video aspect ratio — cropping, letterboxing, padding, and stretching — so you can deliver pixel-perfect content to every platform.

Common Aspect Ratios and Where They Are Used

For detailed platform-specific specs including resolution, bitrate, and duration limits, see our social media video specs 2026 guide.

Three Ways to Change Aspect Ratio

There are three fundamental approaches, and each has different trade-offs:

1. Crop (Remove Edges)

Cropping removes content from the edges to fit the target ratio. This is the most common approach because it avoids black bars and distortion.

Best for: Converting 16:9 to 9:16, 1:1, or 4:5 when the subject is centered.

Trade-off: You lose part of the frame. For 16:9 to 9:16 conversion, you lose about 68% of the horizontal frame.

2. Letterbox / Pillarbox (Add Bars)

Adding black bars (or colored/blurred bars) to fill the frame preserves the entire original video but introduces empty space.

• Letterbox: Black bars on top and bottom (landscape video on a taller display)
• Pillarbox: Black bars on left and right (narrow video on a wider display)

Best for: Preserving the complete frame when all content matters (presentations, tutorials, product demos).

Trade-off: Wasted screen space and a less professional look on social media.

3. Stretch (Distort to Fit)

Stretching forces the video to fill the new aspect ratio by distorting proportions.

Best for: Almost never. Stretching makes everything look wrong — circles become ovals, faces look squished or elongated.

Trade-off: Obvious distortion. Avoid this unless you are deliberately going for a stylized effect.

Method 1: Change Aspect Ratio Online

Our crop video tool provides a visual interface for changing aspect ratios:

1. Upload your video to the crop video tool.
2. Select your target aspect ratio (16:9, 9:16, 1:1, 4:3, or custom).
3. Drag the crop area to position it over the most important part of the frame.
4. Click Crop and download the result.

For resizing the output resolution (not just the ratio), use the resize video tool. If you also need to trim the duration, the video trimmer handles that in the same workflow.

Method 2: Change Aspect Ratio with FFmpeg

FFmpeg provides precise control over cropping, padding, and scaling.

Crop 16:9 to 9:16 (Center Crop)

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf "crop=ih*9/16:ih" \
  -c:v libx264 -crf 18 -c:a copy output_9x16.mp4

This crops the width to 9/16 of the height, keeping the center of the frame.

Crop 16:9 to 1:1 (Square, Center Crop)

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf "crop=ih:ih" \
  -c:v libx264 -crf 18 -c:a copy output_1x1.mp4

Crop 16:9 to 4:5 (Instagram Portrait)

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf "crop=ih*4/5:ih" \
  -c:v libx264 -crf 18 -c:a copy output_4x5.mp4

Off-Center Crop (Subject Not in Center)

If your subject is off to one side, specify the crop position:

# Crop to 9:16, offset 200 pixels from the left
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf "crop=ih*9/16:ih:200:0" \
  -c:v libx264 -crf 18 -c:a copy output_9x16.mp4

The crop filter syntax is crop=width:height:x:y where x and y are the top-left corner of the crop area.

Add Letterbox (Black Bars)

To add black bars instead of cropping:

# Add letterbox to make 16:9 video fit in 1:1 frame
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf "pad=iw:iw:(ow-iw)/2:(oh-ih)/2:black" \
  -c:v libx264 -crf 18 -c:a copy output_1x1.mp4

Add Blurred Background Instead of Black Bars

A popular technique for social media is filling the empty space with a blurred, scaled-up version of the video:

# 16:9 to 9:16 with blurred background
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -filter_complex \
  "[0:v]scale=1080:1920,boxblur=20:5[bg]; \
   [0:v]scale=-1:1080[fg]; \
   [bg][fg]overlay=(W-w)/2:(H-h)/2[out]" \
  -map "[out]" -map 0:a \
  -c:v libx264 -crf 18 -c:a copy output_blurred_bg.mp4

This creates a visually appealing result that fills the entire vertical frame without black bars, commonly seen on Instagram Reels and TikTok.

Platform-Specific Aspect Ratio Guide

YouTube

YouTube supports a wide range of aspect ratios, but optimizes for 16:9. Other ratios display with black bars (pillarbox for vertical, letterbox for ultra-wide).

# Standard YouTube (16:9, 1080p)
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf "scale=1920:1080,setsar=1" \
  -c:v libx264 -crf 18 -c:a aac -b:a 192k output_youtube.mp4

For detailed YouTube settings, see our best video settings for YouTube guide.

YouTube Shorts

YouTube Shorts requires 9:16 aspect ratio:

# YouTube Shorts (9:16, 1080x1920)
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf "crop=ih*9/16:ih,scale=1080:1920" \
  -c:v libx264 -crf 18 -c:a aac -b:a 128k -t 60 output_shorts.mp4

TikTok and Instagram Reels

Both platforms prefer 9:16 vertical video:

# TikTok / Instagram Reels (9:16, 1080x1920)
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf "crop=ih*9/16:ih,scale=1080:1920" \
  -c:v libx264 -crf 20 -c:a aac -b:a 128k output_vertical.mp4

For complete TikTok and Reels specs, see our convert video for Instagram Reels and TikTok guide.

Instagram Feed

Instagram feed supports 1:1 (square), 4:5 (portrait), and 16:9 (landscape), but 4:5 gets the most screen real estate:

# Instagram feed portrait (4:5, 1080x1350)
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf "crop=ih*4/5:ih,scale=1080:1350" \
  -c:v libx264 -crf 20 -c:a aac -b:a 128k output_ig_feed.mp4

Twitter/X

Twitter supports 16:9, 1:1, and everything in between. 16:9 is recommended for maximum display area.

Batch Converting to Multiple Aspect Ratios

If you regularly publish to multiple platforms, script the conversion:

#!/bin/bash
# Convert one input to all major aspect ratios
INPUT="$1"
BASE="${INPUT%.*}"

# 16:9 (YouTube, standard)
ffmpeg -i "$INPUT" -vf "scale=1920:1080:force_original_aspect_ratio=decrease,pad=1920:1080:(ow-iw)/2:(oh-ih)/2" \
  -c:v libx264 -crf 18 -c:a aac -b:a 192k "${BASE}_16x9.mp4"

# 9:16 (TikTok, Reels, Shorts)
ffmpeg -i "$INPUT" -vf "crop=ih*9/16:ih,scale=1080:1920" \
  -c:v libx264 -crf 20 -c:a aac -b:a 128k "${BASE}_9x16.mp4"

# 1:1 (Instagram square)
ffmpeg -i "$INPUT" -vf "crop=ih:ih,scale=1080:1080" \
  -c:v libx264 -crf 20 -c:a aac -b:a 128k "${BASE}_1x1.mp4"

# 4:5 (Instagram portrait)
ffmpeg -i "$INPUT" -vf "crop=ih*4/5:ih,scale=1080:1350" \
  -c:v libx264 -crf 20 -c:a aac -b:a 128k "${BASE}_4x5.mp4"

echo "All versions created."

For more batch processing techniques, read our batch processing files guide.

Aspect Ratio and Resolution: Understanding the Relationship

For a deeper understanding of video resolution, check our 4K video conversion guide. If you want to compress the output, our video compressor can reduce file size while maintaining visual quality.

Advanced: Pan and Scan for Vertical Video

For professional results when converting landscape to vertical, you can animate the crop position to follow the action. This technique, called "pan and scan," keeps the most important content in frame:

# Pan from left to center over the first 5 seconds, then hold center
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf "crop=ih*9/16:ih:min(200*t\,200+(iw-ih*9/16)/2):0" \
  -c:v libx264 -crf 18 -c:a copy output_panscan.mp4

For automated pan-and-scan with AI subject detection, dedicated tools like CapCut or Opus Clip analyze speaker positions and automatically reframe the crop area.

Fixing Incorrect Aspect Ratio Without Re-encoding

Sometimes a video displays with the wrong aspect ratio (stretched or squished) due to incorrect metadata. Fix the display aspect ratio without re-encoding:

# Set display aspect ratio to 16:9 without re-encoding
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -c copy -aspect 16:9 output.mp4

This only changes the metadata — the pixel dimensions stay the same, but players will display the video at the correct ratio.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

1. Stretching instead of cropping: Never force a non-matching ratio by stretching. Distorted video looks unprofessional.
2. Ignoring safe zones: Social media platforms overlay UI elements (like/comment buttons, progress bars). Keep important content away from edges.
3. Cropping too aggressively: When going from 16:9 to 9:16, 68% of the frame is lost. Reframe with intention.
4. Using wrong pixel dimensions: H.264 requires even dimensions. Always use ceil(iw/2)*2:ceil(ih/2)*2 to ensure compatibility.
5. Forgetting audio: When re-encoding video, always copy or re-encode the audio stream too. Use -c:a copy to preserve it.

Summary

Changing video aspect ratio is a fundamental skill for content creators publishing to multiple platforms. The three methods — crop, letterbox/pad, and stretch — each have their place, but cropping is the most common and professional approach.

For quick conversions, use our crop video tool with preset aspect ratios. For batch processing multiple videos, the FFmpeg scripts in this guide handle every common conversion. And for the most professional results on vertical platforms, consider the blurred background technique or automated pan-and-scan.

Remember: always shoot wider than your narrowest target ratio, and use our video converter for any format conversions needed alongside the aspect ratio change.